Friday, December 11, 2015

LPRT 24th Annual NES Associates Christmas Classic - Round of 16

Veronica Sotomayor and Alexandra Herrera were the upset winners in the Round of 16 at the Ladies Professional Racquetball Tour (LPRT) 24th Annual NES Associates Christmas Classic in Arlington, Virginia. Eleventh seed Sotomayor defeated 6th seed Michelle Key in three close games, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7, and Herrera - the 10th seed - got the best of 7th seed Cristina Amaya in four games, 11-6, 10-12, 15-13, 11-1.

Top seeds Paola Longoria and Maria Jose Vargas both won their Round of 16 matches easily, handing out one donut each. Longoria beat Masiel Rivera, 11-0, 11-3, 11-1, while Vargas defeated Maria Renee Rodriguez, 11-4, 11-0, 11-6. But 3rd seed Rhonda Rajsich needed four games to fend off 14th seed Carla Muñoz, 11-8, 5-11, 11-6, 11-3.

Sotomayor was also an upset winner in doubles, as she's paired with Maria Jose Vargas, which is their first time playing together. Neither has played many LPRT doubles events this year, so their seeding is lower than perhaps it should be, as they are seeded sixth. Thus, they were up against 3rd seeds Michelle Key and Frédérique Lambert, and came out on top in two games, 15-5, 15-13.

Sotomayor and Vargas were strong in the match. Lambert also made some great shots, but also made several errors - many forced by her opponents good play.

In another upset outcome, it won't be two wins in a row for Sheryl Lotts and Rhonda Rajsich, as they fell to Cristina Amaya and Sofia Rascon, 15-10, 8-15, 11-8. It looked like Lotts and Rajsich would pull out the win early in the tie-breaker, as they took a 5-0 lead. But Amaya and Rascon tied it at 5-5.

Lotts and Rajsich pulled ahead again at 8-5, but Amaya and Rascon held them there, and got the last six points of the match, winning the breaker 11-8 when Lotts skipped a backhand shot.

The quarterfinals begin at 10 AM Saturday with the semi-finals at 4 PM Saturday and the final on Sunday at 11 AM. You can watch matches live from Arlington via the LPRT Livestream channel. The doubles semis are at 6 PM Saturday and final at noon on Sunday. All times eastern.

2015 24th Annual NES Associates Christmas Classic, December 11-13
Arlington, Virginia


Round of 16 - Singles

1) Paola Longoria d. 17) Masiel Rivera, 11-0, 11-3, 11-1
8) Sofia Rascon d. 9) Susana Acosta, 11-3, 2-11, 11-5, 11-8

5) Frédérique Lambert d. 12) Sheryl Lotts, 11-2, 11-1, 11-4
4) Samantha Salas d. 20) Monserrat Mejia, 11-1, 11-4, 11-1

3) Rhonda Rajsich d. 14) Carla Muñoz, 11-8, 5-11, 11-6, 11-3
11) Veronica Sotomayor d. 6) Michelle Key, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7

10) Alexandra Herrera d. 7) Cristina Amaya, 11-6, 10-12, 15-13, 11-1
2) Maria Jose Vargas d. 15) Maria Renee Rodriguez, 11-4, 11-0, 11-6

Quarterfinals - Singles

1) Paola Longoria v. 8) Sofia Rascon
4) Samantha Salas v. 5) Frédérique Lambert

3) Rhonda Rajsich v. 11) Veronica Sotomayor
2) Maria Jose Vargas v. 10) Alexandra Herrera

Round of 16 - Doubles

1) Susana Acosta & Samantha Salas - BYE
8) Gabriela Martinez & Andrea Martinez Gonzalez d. 9) Masiel Rivera & Maria Renee Rodriguez, 15-12, 9-15, 11-8

5) Cristina Amaya & Sofia Rascon - BYE
4) Sheryl Lotts & Rhonda Rajsich - BYE

3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert - BYE
6) Veronica Sotomayor & Maria Jose Vargas - BYE

7) Monserrat Mejia & Carla Muñoz d. 10) Cecilia Pratt & Jennifer Saunders, 15-4, 15-4
2) Alexandra Herrera & Paola Longoria - BYE

Quarterfinals - Doubles

1) Susana Acosta & Samantha Salas d. 8) Gabriela Martinez & Andrea Martinez Gonzalez, 15-7, 15-9
5) Cristina Amaya & Sofia Rascon d. 4) Sheryl Lotts & Rhonda Rajsich, 15-10, 8-15, 11-8

6) Veronica Sotomayor & Maria Jose Vargas d. 3) Michelle Key & Frédérique Lambert, 15-5, 15-13
2) Alexandra Herrera & Paola Longoria d. 7) Monserrat Mejia & Carla Muñoz, 14-15, 15-2, 11-2

Semi-finals - Doubles

1) Susana Acosta & Samantha Salas v. 5) Cristina Amaya & Sofia Rascon
2) Alexandra Herrera & Paola Longoria v. 6) Veronica Sotomayor & Maria Jose Vargas

Follow the bouncing ball….

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